


Poker Knight

by ghostl0rd (ahatfullofoctarine)



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: M/M, Pre-Relationship, Strip Poker, Unrequited Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-24
Updated: 2017-05-24
Packaged: 2018-11-04 01:31:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10979574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ahatfullofoctarine/pseuds/ghostl0rd
Summary: It takes a losing hand at tonight's strip poker game for Nyx to discover their point man has an interesting set of tattoos.Nyx/Pelna.





	Poker Knight

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JazzRaft](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JazzRaft/gifts), [volti](https://archiveofourown.org/users/volti/gifts).



> bless you guys for joining me in rare pair hell so nice and warm
> 
> this is just a headcanon that...yeah. sleeve tattoos and chest and back tattoos ok . 
> 
> *sets self on fire and rolls away*

Scowling wasn't something Pelna did often, but when he did and usually for good reason--whether it was stopping Nyx from running toward certain death or stopping Crowe from running after Nyx, it did adverse wonders for Nyx's concentration.

…which; naturally implied that Nyx hadn’t been facing difficulty in concentration, which was also not the case. Not with an ever mounting list of insubordinations that never went unpunished by Drautos and a passing admiration for his fellow glaive that had as much ‘passed’ as progressed into a potent crush quicker than anyone could utter the words _court martial_. Pelna wasn’t aware, though of course everyone else present was, and Nyx found it unfathomable to the point of obscene that a guy who maintained a 360-degree awareness of his surroundings at all times could be this oblivious.

The standings for tonight’s poker game also didn’t help.  Crowe was enjoying a comfortable lead because she had a shitload of hairpins that each counted as one article of clothing (no one was going to argue technicalities with a fully-fledged black mage). Nyx was a close second, having relinquished his leather jacket and aviators to her as trophies. Libertus had been whittled down to a t-shirt and sweatpants.  In last place, repelling the cold in chocobo-print boxers (though certainly not Nyx’s focus) was Pelna. Luche was dealer and host of their Friday post-battle tradition purely on the basis that he could be counted on to be neutral when the in-fighting occurred.

(He could also be counted on to occasionally snap Nyx out of staring by kicking him under the table.)

 _Gods he smells so_ good _—lavender and something else, starts with a silent…eee-lang eee-lang, or some shit—what the fuck how old was he when he got those tattoos—how am I only now just finding out that he has them—why wouldn’t he tell me about his tattoos I thought we were close, well, fool_ me _once—_

Nyx jumped up a little, knees bumping against the table’s underside.  All eyes were suddenly on him, minus Luche who was smirking at something on his phone.

If it was at all possible Pelna's gaze narrowed even further.  "You're cheating," he said.

“No he's not.” Crowe yawned, nudging Nyx, who, in a fit of exaggerated panic that Pelna might put two and two together, kicked her under the table. As soon as she winced Pelna rounded on her, immediately suspicious.

“ _You're_ cheating.”

“No I’m not.”

Libertus, who was halfway through yawning choked, on account of someone kicking _him_ , and quickly sat up, glaring at all present.  “Do that again; see what happens.”

" _Sorry_ ," said Luche, looking as far from contrite as possible and still more interested in his phone. “Thought you might be feeling left out.”

Libertus grabbed a few peanuts from one of the bowls nearby and pelted them at him in revenge.

“Just so you know, you’re vacuuming when this night’s over.”

“Pfft.” Libertus tossed a few more and then started snacking on the rest.

 _I’ll go all in in the next round, yeah royal flush, no one can beat that…fuckin' hell, the colors are so_ vivid, _though, the one on his chest looks really recent what animal is that I can’t even look properly without him noticing—is this where all his pay goes, maybe I should get one—_

Pelna’s chair screeched against the floor as he got up, and Nyx swiftly ducked his head, pretending to dust off his jeans. Pelna looked at him oddly, but shrugged it off and glanced at the others, tucking his cards into the waistband of his boxers.  Nyx caught himself just before his gaze lowered further than that and coughed into his lap, ears heating up. Crowe leaned forward, pretending to adjust the laces of her boots.

“Get a move on already,” she hissed.  “One of the guys from Finance was asking me about him.”

Nyx stared, dread pooling in his gut. He grabbed her arm. “What? _Who_? _When_? What’d he say?”

“A lot more than _you_ , that’s for sure.”

“I’m grabbing a drink from the fridge, anyone else want one?” Pelna asked the group.

“I’ll stick with water,” said Libertus, patting the bottle in front of him. “Early start tomorrow training the new recruits.”

“Refill, Luche?” Pelna asked as Luche tossed back the rest of his wine.  Luche nodded.

“Just bring the whole bottle, it'll be easier.”

“Copy that. Lemon rosemary for you, Crowe?”

“Yeah. Take Nyx with you, he’s looking a little parched.” Nyx kicked her. Pelna scratched at his stubble, frowning at the two of them and trying to gauge whether or not he needed to intervene.

“Nyx?”

Nyx stood and shoved his cards into his back pocket.  “Whatever, I’ll get my own drink.”

He followed Pelna out of the living room, and gave Crowe the finger behind his back. 

 

. . .

 

_…it doesn’t look like one of the Astrals…six wings, blue skin, arms stretched out to the sky, in flight, soaring…horns, pointed and sharp, clawed talons, her eyes are closed, though—_

“Got it the first day we mastered warping.”

Nyx blinked. Pelna was still at the counter with his back to him, muddling lemon chunks and rosemary with simple syrup. He shrugged and reached for the vodka, smiling over his shoulder briefly before turning back to Crowe’s drink.

“Puked my guts out, of course,” he said, shaking her cocktail vigorously, “but I still came out of that thing excited as all hell. Gods, after losing everything, forced to choose between a new home where half the tenants wanted us gone and _Niflheim_ —I was done with all that. Thought I’d be better off out there, I knew a guy who was putting a hunting party together…” he went over to the fridge to put the rest of the ice back, and closed the door. He didn’t turn immediately, hand resting on the handle. 

“Pel—” he jumped a little as Pelna whipped around, grinning from ear to ear, eyes shining.

“We _flew,_ Nyx. It wasn’t exactly freedom but, _Gods_ , it was pretty damn close.  I've never felt anything so...I ask you, how many people in this city, in the _entire world_ get to do what we do? Get to visualize where we wanna go and—poof, done. Blink of an eye…” Pelna coughed, suddenly mortified. “Sorry, rambling aren't I…”

Far from it, Nyx thought. The look of pure joy on Pelna’s face as he spoke had filled him with the inexplicable urge to drag him in and kiss him. He cleared his throat and took a long sip of his beer instead. Scraped up what was left of his voice again.

“So uh…you got a tattoo because of all that?”

“Well, I _was_ a little shit when I got it, so…” Pelna shook his head at himself.

“And the one on your chest?” Nyx asked. Pelna looked down. Using it as an excuse to get closer, Nyx advanced, almost crowding the guy, but if Pelna had any reservations he didn’t show it. Instead he pointed, proudly.

“First hunt.” said Pelna, fingers tracing over one of the Behemoth King’s wings unfurled along his collar bone and extending past his bicep. Completely innocent, of course, but Nyx shivered anyway. “Wasn’t actually a hunt, the two of us just stumbled into its territory, me and Luche.  Drautos straightened us out real good after that…”

Nyx swallowed and tried to think of something smart to say but whatever thoughts and words he tried to string together were swiftly derailed by the heady scent of ylang ylang— _there, nailed it_ —and lavender.  They were standing too close together and if he looked up he was _fucked_. 

_Maybe this might not have been a good—_

“ _Dude_.” Pelna laughed and flicked him in the forehead.  “What is _with_ you?  You’re all over the place tonight, it’s a miracle you’re even _winning_.”

He picked up Crowe’s drink and started for the hallway again.   Nyx smiled, picking up Luche's bottle and following after him.

“I’m multi-tasking.”

“Oh, is _that_ what they call it.”

Nyx rolled his eyes.  “Well, what would _you_ call it, Mr. Chocobo Print?”

“ _Distracted_.”

“Hah...good one,” Nyx muttered, raising his beer can to his lips, shamelessly eyeing his teammate from head to toe.  

Unfathomable.

**Author's Note:**

> the tattoo on pelna's back is Ultima from FFXII
> 
> a dissertation on [pelna khara and nyx ulric](https://ghostl0rd.tumblr.com/post/177652924690/pelna-khara-a-writers-cheat-sheet)


End file.
